This invention generally relates to the art of electrical connectors and, particularly, to an electrical connector assembly such as a modular jack assembly.
A typical electrical connector assembly includes some form of dielectric housing which may or may not be surrounded by a protective metal shield, with a plurality of conductive terminals mounted on or in the housing. For instance, the housing typically is configured to include a receptacle or female portion or a plug or male portion for mating with a complementary connector of an opposite configuration. The housing also may be configured for mounting on a printed circuit board so that the terminals of the connector can be electrically connected to circuit traces on the printed circuit board. Still further, it has become expedient to provide the terminals as components of a terminal module which may include an inner housing on which the terminals are mounted, and this terminal module is assembled into the outer housing. Such modules provide for efficient manufacture and assembly of such connectors. For instance, the terminals may be overmolded in the inner housing, and this singular subassembly or module is assembled within the larger outer housing of the connector assembly.
An example of such electrical connectors as described above is a modular jack assembly which is used extensively in the telecommunications industry. A typical modular jack-type connector includes a plurality of spring beam-type terminals which protrude from a portion of the jack housing into a jack plug-receiving cavity of the housing. The terminals or contact portions of the terminals usually are separated from each other by molded portions of the housing. The fabrication and assembly of such modular jack connectors has become increasingly difficult and complicated due to the ever-increasing miniaturization and density of such connector arrangements. Further complicating these problems is that, in order to reduce the cost and space requirements of many applications, plural modular jacks have been integrated in a single housing in a juxtaposed arrangement. The housing, in turn, typically is mounted on a printed circuit board, particularly when associated with the transmission of digital data in computing equipment, for instance. Still further, it may be desirable to mount a multi-receptacle modular jack assembly onto a printed circuit board, such that the jack plugs can be inserted from the top of the assembly housing toward the circuit board. All of these desirable arrangements, in combination with the continuing miniaturization of the connectors, makes it very difficult, if at all possible, to use the efficient terminal module system in such connectors. The present invention is directed to solving this myriad of problems by providing an electrical connector assembly, such as a modular jack assembly, which makes efficient use of terminal modules separate from the overall connector housing means.
An object, therefore, of the invention is to provide a new and improved electrical connector assembly, such as a modular jack assembly, of the character described.
Another object of the invention is to provide a new and improved electrical connector or modular jack assembly for mounting on a printed circuit board and incorporating plural jack receptacles.
In the exemplary embodiment of the invention, a modular jack assembly is provided for mounting on a printed circuit board. The assembly includes a pair of complementary interengageable modular subassemblies. Each subassembly includes an outer housing having a top face with at least one receptacle for receiving an appropriate mating jack plug in a plug insertion direction, along with a side face with a cavity and passages communicating with the receptacle. A terminal module includes a dielectric inner housing positioned in the cavity in the side face of the outer housing in a direction transversely of the plug insertion direction. A plurality of terminals are mounted on the inner housing, with contact portions of the terminals projecting through the passages into the receptacle for engaging appropriate contacts of the mating jack plug. Therefore, the outer housings of the modular subassemblies can be joined at the side faces thereof complete jack assembly, concealing the terminal modules therewithin.
The outer housings of the pair of modular subassemblies may include complementary interengaging latch means at the side faces of the outer housings to hold the subassemblies together. As disclosed herein, the latch means include at least one latch arm on the outer housing of at least one of the modular subassemblies engageable with a latch member on the outer housing of the other modular subassembly. In the preferred embodiment, the outer housings of the pair of modular subassemblies are hermaphroditic, with one of the latch arms and one of the latch members on each outer housing.
Complementary interengaging locating means may be provided between the outer housings of the pair of modular subassemblies. As disclosed herein, the locating means include at least one locating post projecting from the side face of the outer housing of at least one of the modular subassemblies insertable into a locating hole in the side face of the outer housing of the other modular subassembly generally perpendicular to the plug insertion direction. In the preferred embodiment, the outer housings of the pair of modular subassemblies are hermaphroditic, with one of the locating posts and one of the locating holes on each outer housing. The locating post and locating hole of each outer housing are immediately adjacent each other and are shown herein as being semi-cylindrical in cross-section.
Other features of the invention include complementary interengaging retention means between the outer and inner housings of each modular subassembly for retaining the terminal module on the outer housing, with the inner housing in the cavity of the outer housing. The terminating portions of the terminals may comprise tail portions for insertion into appropriate holes in the printed circuit board. The contact portions of the terminals comprise arm portions cantilevered into the respective receptacle generally parallel to the plug insertion direction. Finally, in the disclosed embodiment, the top face of the outer housing of each modular subassembly includes a plurality of the receptacles, along with a plurality of terminal modules insertable into a corresponding plurality of cavities in the side face of the housing of the respective modular subassembly.